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Brian Drabb

Research Analyst at William Blair & Company, L.L.C.

Brian Drab is a Partner, CFA, and Co-Group Head of Industrials at William Blair & Company, L.L.C., specializing in advanced manufacturing and industrial technology research. He covers companies such as Generac Holdings (GNRC), EnerSys (ENS), Vertiv (VRT), Valmont Industries (VMI), and Novanta, with a strong performance track record including a 65% success rate on 52 ratings and an average return of +20.70% per rating according to TipRanks, highlighted by a +255.20% return on his buy call for GNRC in 2020. Drab joined William Blair in 2006 after working as a manufacturing engineer at Motorola, holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering summa cum laude from Washington University in St. Louis and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School, and maintains CFA credentials.

Brian Drabb's questions to VALMONT INDUSTRIES (VMI) leadership

Question · Q4 2025

Brian Drabb inquired about the 10% utility growth assumption for 2026, asking about the proportional contribution of price versus volume. He also questioned the growth expectations for non-utility infrastructure segments (telecom, lighting & transportation, coatings) and the specific tailwinds for the coatings business from data centers and AI. Finally, he asked about the incremental operating margins on additional utility capacity.

Answer

Tom Liguori, Executive Vice President and CFO, confirmed the 10% utility growth, noting a shift from more price than volume in 2025 to more volume than price in 2026, with capacity expansions yielding mid-to-upper 20% incremental margins, approaching 30%. Avner Applbaum, President and CEO, detailed growth across non-utility infrastructure: low-to-mid single digits for telecom, growth in coatings driven by data centers/AI and internal support, and lighting & transportation benefiting from DOT spend and international stabilization. He emphasized coatings' strong third-party business aligned with growth regions. Tom Liguori reiterated the strong incremental margins on utility capacity due to increased throughput and lower unit costs.

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